Duterte satisfied with Cabinet's 'overall performance': Palace

ABS-CBN News

President Rodrigo Duterte has stood by his promise to fire appointees even with just a "whiff" of corruption. Gigie Cruz, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — Despite booting a number of government officials on corruption allegations, President Rodrigo Duterte remains satisfied with his Cabinet's performance, a Palace official said Saturday.

"The president is satisfied with the overall performance of his Cabinet unless he says otherwise," Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

With regards to making new appointments, Abella added that the president has a number of options at his disposal given the lapse of the appointment moratorium on candidates who lost in the May 2016 national elections.

"On the new appointments, we expect the president would have a deeper bench to choose from with the lapse of the appointment ban on losing candidates," he said.

Abella, however, clarified that the lapse meant that Duterte "will be filling Cabinet positions with new men and women."

"As the president himself said, his Cabinet lineup is filled, except for those positions whose heads are designated as officers-in-charge," he said.

Duterte has stood by his promise to fire appointees even with just a "whiff" of corruption.

Ismael Sueno, the recently dismissed interior and local government secretary, was the latest addition to the list of sacked officials due to "loss of trust and confidence" of the president.

Last month, Duterte said he had sacked 92 government personnel, including officials from the Energy Regulatory Commission, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, Land Transportation Office, and the Bureau of Immigration.

Other notable officials fired by Duterte are Peter Laviña, administrator of the National Irrigation Administration, and immigration deputy commissioners Al Argosino and Michael Robles.

Duterte last Thursday also told reporters in Palawan that he plans to fire more government employees on suspicion of corruption.